Amy Gehrt: In death, Williams teaches tragic lesson

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Aug 15, 2014 at 11:55 AMAug 15, 2014 at 12:06 PM

By Amy GehrtMore Content Now

It’s not often celebrity news knocks me for a loop, but when an alert popped up on my phone about Robin Williams’ death, reportedly by his own hand, I have to admit my reaction was, “Robin Williams is dead ... and it’s suicide? Wow. I did not see that one coming.”I wasn’t the only one caught off-guard by the news, which dominated the news cycles and social media for days. Many of us wondered the same thing: How could a man who so clearly loved to laugh, and who had such a knack for comedy that he could make almost anything funny, be so depressed that he’d be driven to take his own life?Apparently, conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh thinks he knows the answer to that question. On Tuesday, the talk show host inexplicably tried to twist the tragedy into a political talking point.“He had everything, everything that you would think would make you happy. But it didn’t,” he said, according to a transcript on his website. “Now, what is the left’s worldview in general? What is it? If you had to attach not a philosophy but an attitude to a leftist worldview, it’s one of pessimism and darkness, sadness. They’re never happy, are they? They’re always angry about something. No matter what they get, they’re always angry.”Um, what? First off, if Limbaugh wants to talk about one side always being angry, I think he’d do well to examine the facts and maybe do the finger-pointing a little closer to home — not that he’s ever let a little thing like the truth stand in his way.More importantly, how in the hell does this pompous slimebag think it’s even mildly appropriate to make inflammatory, idiotic insinuations about something as nonpolitical as suicide? Williams didn’t hang himself because he was angry about the Supreme Court’s Hobby Lobby ruling, nor did he seek to end his life over the right’s refusal to acknowledge climate change — or the right of two consenting adults to marry, regardless of whether the couple in question is gay or straight.Limbaugh has battled his own demons, but when he was illegally popping prescription pills like they were candy did those on the left claim he was an addict in order to dull the pain caused by his belief system, and all of the hate he was spreading? No — although that would have been a bit more believable, at least.Luckily, Limbaugh’s lunacy didn’t find much traction, and following the backlash he has tried to explain away his words by claiming he was actually criticizing the “leftist media” coverage of Williams’ death — a revisionist attempt that is disingenuous at best, and seems more like a transparent excuse to again attack the left and, even more bizarrely, attempt to portray himself as the victim in all of this.“They are the ones trying to tell us why,” he ranted. “They are the ones trying to explain it. They are the ones justifying it. They are the ones glorifying it.”Once again, I have to disagree. Williams’ death would have been big news no matter how he died — his talent, his effervescence and his myriad contributions to the entertainment world over decades all ensured that. Nothing I have seen or read attempts to glorify suicide in any way, shape or form. No one is saying how cool it is to kill oneself, or that it’s a way to attain instant fame.In fact, I’d say the exact opposite message is being communicated. The shocking tragedy of someone so beloved making such a drastic choice is instead serving as a reminder that no one really knows what is going on with someone else, and even the biggest, brightest smiles can conceal severe emotional pain and inner turmoil.The signs of Williams’ internal struggles may not have been seen in time to get him the help he so desperately needed, but his death has sparked a national conversation about depression and suicide, bringing a mental health issue that is hidden all too often out of the shame-filled darkness and into the light — and that just may save some lives.And if that’s the legendary actor’s last gift to us, then it seems only appropriate that, as the bright light that was Williams’ life fades to black, we all take a moment to metaphorically climb atop our desks and, in the spirit of one of my all-time favorite movies, “Dead Poets Society,” offer the salute that Williams’ students do in the final scene of that iconic film: “O Captain, My Captain.”—— Amy Gehrt is the city editor of the Pekin (Illinois) Daily Times. She may be reached at agehrt@pekintimes.com, or on Twitter @AmyGehrt. The views expressed in this column are not necessarily those of the Pekin Daily Times or this publication.

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